ESPN.com: NHL - Will NHL OK help for Buffalo?

With the first month of the season in the books, more than a few teams are facing the stark reality that what you see is what you're going to get. Thus, lukewarm trade interests over the past weeks are starting to get warmer. By December, those interests will reach a boiling point, but the smart shopper might find the best deals now before the holiday rush.

Chris Gratton
After scoring 11 points in his first eight games, Chris Gratton has just three points in his last six.
In some cases, such as the with the Rangers, Sabres and Oilers, a player change might be needed so that a coaching change isn't the next order of business. In other cases, such as with the Thrashers, a coaching change is likely to take place with or without new players.

In no particular order, you can expect the Maple Leafs, Sabres and Islanders to all make fairly quick additions or deletions.

The Leafs, always under intense scrutiny, have to change the flow of a season that is headed downhill very quickly. Coach and general manager Pat Quinn has tried to massage the situation, but it is quickly coming to a crisis point -- and the Leafs have Shane Corson as trade material.

The Sabres ... oh, what a mess we find in Buffalo, where a team in need of a personnel shake up is being run by the league. With all of commissioner Gary Bettman's posturing about "cost certainty" and the pending work stoppage, what are the odds the NHL will sanction any deal in which the Sabres take on salary? Not very good.

The Sabres likely will dangle a player such as Alexei Zhitnik or Stu Barnes, although they'd love to hear any offers for Chris Gratton. In return the Sabres might have interest in a lower-priced player, such as Philadelphia's Pavel Brendl.

Nothing is going right for the Sabres. Besides an empty building and a struggling No. 1 goaltender (Martin Biron hasn't won in his last seven starts), Maxim Afinogenov, whose speed would help the Sabres in the more wide-open NHL, suffered a set back in his recovery from a concussion suffered on Sept. 5. It's unknown when he'll return to the lineup.

Islanders in the market?
The Islanders, perhaps the most disappointing team of the season so far, could swing the biggest deal. General manager Mike Milbury is never shy about such matters, and when he returns from Finland this week he will be checking to see of the recent two-game winning streak is the real rebound or just a dead-cat bounce.

The Isles have depth in goalie with Rick DiPietro in the system. The Atlanta Thrashers might be a trading partner, with Shawn McEachern as the quarry to give the Isles some help up front.

The Ottawa Senators are one of a very few teams with depth at defenses, and even if they aren't top-ranked defensemen, the mere fact that Ottawa can trade a defenseman who can play regularly in the NHL makes them an attractive trading partner.

Words may result in the axe
The New York Rangers got involved in a slugfest in the waning moments of their latest debacle -- a loss at Columbus on Saturday night. If nothing else, the end-of-the-game nonsense provided us with the most inane comment by a coach this season.

When asked about his decision to use a line of Sandy McCarthy, Matthew Barnaby and Krzysztof Oliwa at the end of the game, Rangers' coach Bryan Trotter responded that he wanted to "keep things calm." Mind you, Trottier was not speaking tongue-in-cheek.

A little warning here: Trottier's postgame comments and general manner of answering questions is just as likely to get him fired as the club's horrible performance in three of their last four games.

Just as an aside, the reason for all the naughtiness against the Blue Jackets was a hit put on Rangers defenseman Vladimir Malakhov. To quote McCarthy, the opposition can't be allowed to "go after our best players." With the Rangers pedigree and payroll, if Malakhov is the best player, the problems are bigger than we thought.

A Flyer on Brendl
The Flyers are going out of their way to deny any suggestions they are trying to trade Brendl. OK, then why is he being showcased on 5-on-3 power plays when the game is done as he was last Saturday night in Washington? The Blackhawks had interest, but a good look at Brendl might have dashed that deal.

And if Flyers GM Bob Clarke is still trying to use Brendl as a suggestion that the Eric Lindros trade was a good one, all he has to do is watch Kim Johnsson play. Johnsson has taken over Eric Desjardins spot as the Flyers' best defenseman.

Mining in the mountains
The Colorado Avalanche's inability who win at home through their first eight games has fans howling about the trade that sent Chris Drury to Calgary for Derek Morris. Certainly, in the short term, Drury's big goals for Calgary make the trade look lopsided.

However, the Avs are using basically five defensemen and Morris is one of the five. In the long run, the defenseman who can play 25-30 minutes a game for many seasons is truly valuable.

But having a bright future is of little solace right now, and Colorado GM Pierre Lacroix is all about making surprise trades. The team held a meeting after Sunday's home loss to Nashville with the possible intent of letting players know that if they want to stay in what is becoming the best hockey city in the United States they better dig a little deeper -- especially at home, where fans who have not left an empty seat since the team arrived from Quebec deserve a better show for their money.

Short shifts

Aside from places such as Colorado, the NHL is suffering through some early-season attendance problems. Here's a suggestion -- stop making the buildings look like a flea market every time play is stopped. Believe it or not, you are bombarded by less advertising when you stay home and watch on TV than when you are at the game -- and you're not paying $50 to watch the game in your living room.

Speaking of watching on TV, when will the NHL admit the mistake and demand that the netting behind the goals be white or clear. The black netting makes the replays look like a Pee Wee game.

Way back in October we suggested that the L.A. Kings would call up Mike Cammalleri by December, and by the end of the season he would get some consideration as a candidate for rookie of the year. Well, it only took until November to get Cammalleri to the NHL, now he has to earn the ice time to show his stuff.

A simple question here: If Zhitnik got a two-game suspension for a kneeing infraction against Florida last week, and then he doesn't practice with the Sabres because of a groin injury, did he really serve a suspension? Must be all about the money, and not the player's presence on the ice.